Global and local media and the making of an Ethiopian national icon

Bibliographic Data

ID2173181
AuthorsHui Niu Wilcox (Department of Sociology, St. Catherine University, St. Paul, MN, USA), Hui Wilcox (St. Catherine University, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume31
Issue3
Pages385-401
Publication date2019-09-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of African Cultural Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1369-6815 • E-ISSN: 1469-9346
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13696815.2018.1546168
OpenAlexW2901396751
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited18

This paper analyzes the global and local media coverage of Melaku Belay, an acclaimed Ethiopian dancer and social entrepreneur. How have the media mythologized his story? How does Melaku participate in the mediated narration of his life? I address these questions by historically situating Melaku's biography and by juxtaposing media representations with my interviews with the artist and observation of his performances. This inquiry illuminates the signifying power of Melaku's masculine dancing body for both neoliberal ideology and Ethiopian nationalism. The media have rendered Melaku's story into a myth that promotes the neoliberal ethos valorizing private ownership. Melaku, however, remains agential by selectively engaging with the media, and by sharing his own vision of nation and self. These layered analyses illuminate the complex relationship between agency and representation in the contexts of neoliberalism/neocolonialism, nationalism, and globalization

Geography · Icon · Media studies · Political science · Sociology · African history and culture analysis · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Computer Science · History · Social and Cultural Dynamics

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